Another fantastic meal at Teppanyaki Kyoto! With family visiting, this was the first spot on my…read morelist. We sat at the traditional tatami table with so many of my favorite bites. Service is always amazing, interior is so cute and has cool seating options like tatami! Highly recommend.

I went in a group, and we split a lot of different items. The seaweed salad was good (4/5), and the…read morepork gyoza was all right (3/5). The takoyaki has a crunchy outside and a good flavor (4/5), and the okonomiyaki is pretty filling (4/5); these were the best two. The yaki-udon with shrimp was ok (3/5) but definitely expensive for what it was and the quantity; they also don't add much shrimp, despite the up charge. The sake no shioyaki was below average for salmon (2/5) and very expensive for that amount they give you. Similarly, the onigiri is almost entirely rice if you add salmon (2/5). You order on a tablet, and they bring the food out. Service was ok (3/5); we had empty waters for a while. The restaurant is well-decorated, and you can see the chefs work, which gives it an ambiance somewhat like a hibachi place (4/5). Overall, I think most of the items are pretty expensive for what they are; they don't have the quality or quantity to justify the price.

As someone who's a huge sushi lover and lived in Chicago for several years, my standards are pretty…read morehigh. Otaru completely exceeded them. It honestly raised the bar for sushi in Pittsburgh and feels like the kind of restaurant you'd expect to find in a much bigger city. Everything I've tried has been incredibly fresh and beautifully prepared. Yes, it's a splurge, but it's absolutely worth it for the quality. The service is excellent, and the view overlooking Mount Washington makes the whole experience even better. If you're looking for the best sushi in Pittsburgh, this is it.

A friend and I grabbed dinner on a Friday at 6. The restaurant is easy to find and there is…read moreadequate parking. The restaurant is located right on Mt Washington, giving a good view of the city. The interior looks appropriate for a sushi restaurant, but due to the massive windows lacked the darker vibe of other upscale restaurants. I've been to hundreds of sushi spots and the interior was merely average. Otaru seems to struggle with its identity. It needs to either commit to being an upscale restaurant or relax and simply be a quality one. The wait staff were kind and prompt, but at times appeared they may be less experienced. We were brought hot (paper) towels and edamame. We ordered the fried tako balls as an app. I personally don't prefer tako and found it very dense and chewy and the overall flavors were too undeveloped. The hand rolls were well filled and were easy to eat due to being more of a taco configuration than a true hand roll. The nori was not too tough, lending to a pleasant experience. The nigiri and sashimi were also good. The nigiri were good, but not as elevated as another upscale sushi spot in the city. They were still very good, but not quite excellent. They either need a bit more development or to be relaxed and served as two per order and the price adjusted slightly upward. If you take one thing from this review, let it be this. The yellowtail jalepeno cups were astonishing. By far this was the most well executed dish I have ever eaten and the best sushi dish I've had. They appear to be wrapped in toasted sesame seed wrappers. If you've had Hapi mixed crackers they give the same great flavor of the "fried chicken" pieces but with yuzu vinaigrette and the umami of the fish. I will certainly be back solely because of how good they were.

pork buns and spicy yuzu ramen fire. the yuzu taste was actually prominent and good very cozy storeread more

This may be the best ramen I've had since being in Pittsburgh. I'm still open to new spots as I…read morecontinue my market research to recreate my own ramen at home. Located in Shadyside, this joint is so cozy making it a great midday lunch stop or an evening joint to grab dinner and a drink. Don't sleep on the curry rice and karaage chicken either!

I've been to Kiku a few times now, and it never disappoints. This time I started with the miso…read moresoup, which was flavorful and the perfect way to begin the meal. For my entrée, I ordered four sushi rolls, and every one of them was incredibly fresh and delicious. You can really tell they use quality ingredients. The service has always been attentive and friendly without being overbearing, and the atmosphere is quiet, calm, and relaxing..perfect for enjoying a meal. Kiku has become one of my go-to spots, and I'll definitely keep coming back. Highly recommend!

We have been coming here for years, and it has easily become one of my daughter's favorite places…read more Tucked away in Station Square, it has a comforting, traditional vibe that makes you feel right at home. The staff plays a huge part in that; the service is consistently attentive, sweet, and welcoming every single time we walk through the door. It makes total sense why they're so good at what they do, considering they've been open since 1983 and were actually the very first spot to introduce sushi to the city. Whether you're getting some of their fresh nigiri, a classic maki roll, or ordering a big, comforting bowl of sukiyaki, everything is always flawless. It's a true Pittsburgh staple that never lets us down, and we look forward to it every single time we go.

My husband chose this spot for my first dinner after moving here, and... He made the right call :)…read moreDefinitely make a reservation; the place was packed. The seafood is fresh, and the menu features several creative options. We tried a variety of items (Nigiri, Temaki, Takoyaki, and the daily specials) and honestly loved everything! As sushi lovers, we shared several small plates and really appreciated the quality. The fish-to-rice ratio was spot on. I loved the vibe: very hipster, complete with a DJ. Next time, we'd love to sit at the counter facing the kitchen for that authentic Japanese experience. Our server was so sweet and gave us some great recommendations. Even though it was busy, the timing of the courses was perfect. Highly recommend!

A mysterious door that leads up stairs to a hip dark Japanese bar. There are many stairs leading to…read morethe restaurant. You will need a reservation, this place was packed even on a Tuesday night. We loved the crispness and juicy Kaarage. A really nice portion for $12. The nigiri plate was good. Fish was fresh, rice was soft, warm and well seasoned. For $30 this was a pretty good deal. The $75 grand meal on weekends looks so good. The $20 sushi roll seemed a bit steep but the roll was good. The rice ratio seemed like a little too much rice but the fish was flavorful with the spicy sauce. Overall would recommend for PA sushi!

such a cute and yummy place, we got to sit inside a big honeycomb so vibes were nicee…read more the pork yakitori was my fav out of the yakitori we tried the shoyu beef ramen was tasty and broth wasn't too heavy. i liked the toppings it came with and they were honestly pretty generous with the amount of beef servers were also really nice

Wonderful restaurant for a lunch hangout with friends! The honeycomb theme is super aesthetic…read more Food-wise, I ordered the katsuobushi pork ramen, which was delicious! The broth was rich and savory, and it came with multiple slices of meat which just melts in your mouth. The food did take a longer time than expected to come out, but the servers were nice and helpful. Overall recommend!!

I made a reservation for four people for 5:30pm on Thursday night. I walked in and was able to be…read moreseated right away. The inside consists of several tables for four and a long bar area and it's pretty small so I wouldn't bring a group bigger than four here. The ambiance inside is upscale and beautiful. They have an electronic toilet in the bathroom with a heated seat. My only critique is that the acoustics could be better - it's very loud and echoey inside. The food was incredible. It can be pricey but I think it's worth it for some of the fresh fish in town. The flavors were beautiful and I could not be happier with the food.

good and super adorable but also burns your wallet. portions were super small for the price but the…read morequality of the fish was rly good. i rly liked their dynamite crab bowl. the rice crisps and spicy mayo paired rly well with the rice and crab and it isn't something i've found anywhere else. also the crab meat was rly fresh and had great flavor sashimi platter and nigiri platter had roughly the same if not the exact same type of fish. i liked all the sides the sashimi platter came with like shiso leaves but i probably still prefer nigiri because it has some rice to go with the fish. i got a grapefruit highball which was light in alch taste matcha misu was a good sweet finish to the meal but honestly it's skippable. there was no matcha taste, it was purely vanilla but a good vanilla very adorable dishes, cups, silverware and ambiance was nice

Quite literally my favorite restaurant in the city, delicious food and great atmosphere. Service is…read morealways quick. The complimentary tea is a nice touch.

Got takeout from here and thought the food was just OK. I ordered a katsu curry and a gyudon. The…read morekatsu curry was pretty good, but the gyudon was not. The beef was cut way too thick and some of the pieces were just too chewy. One positive is that the portion sizes here are huge and you get a lot of bang for your bucks.